Tuesday, January 31, 2012

Mentorship

Building community, growing hope and supporting change. I see this happening at The Mustard Seed all the time but today I saw it happen in a different way. Recently I have been a part of conversation in regards to leadership, and it was suggested I seek out someone to mentor. We discussed how that could be a little awkward to suggest to someone “I want to be your mentor,” but the leader of the discussion pointed out that someone had done this in his life and he didn’t find it awkward but felt cared for and excited that someone wanted to spend intentional time speaking into his life.

I knew immediately who I wanted to ask and, by what I’m pretty sure was no coincidence; I was going to see her later that day. As we sat down with our iced teas, I began to explain the conversation and this idea of mentorship. I let her know that I wanted to spend time with her with this idea of mentorship as a bit of framework, and guess what? She was excited and said something along the lines of “thank you so much for thinking of me,” and we then made a plan to meet at least once a month. The more the conversation went on we talked a bit more about community and feelings of loneliness. I walked away thinking about how something like this was fulfilling The Mustard Seed’s vision of building community, but it’s probably not what immediately comes to mind when people think of what we do here. I think that’s kind of great because I think if you talk about community it’s not going to look like one group of people “helping” another group. It’s simply about people and about showing kindness.

I will leave you with a quote, by one of my favourite people, to tie this thought off.

“You can find Calcutta anywhere in the world. You only need two eyes to see. Everywhere in the world there are people that are not loved, people that are not wanted nor desired, people that no one will help, people that are pushed away or forgotten. And this is the greatest poverty.” -Mother Teresa

Also, as I embark on this journey to mentor my friend, I am interested to hear what advice our readers have to offer. Please leave a comment and help me get the ball rolling

Thursday, January 19, 2012

Name Our New Building

In case you haven’t heard, The Mustard Seed has purchased a 20 one-bedroom unit apartment building to provide housing for the homeless and for those at risk of becoming homeless. The Government of Alberta has funded 70 per cent of the capital costs for the building.


Tenants will pay rent and live independently, but as you can imagine, making the transition from being homeless to being housed is a big step. Support is needed to help tenants with their transition to stability so The Mustard Seed will provide physical, mental and spiritual support. Services for tenants will focus on the areas of employment, addictions and more. Mentorship will also be provided on how to develop life skills, for example, in the areas of budgeting, shopping and setting appropriate boundaries.

We’ve just housed three people this week and we are very excited! Together, we know that we will be able to help with growing hope and supporting change in their lives. Just one thing – we haven’t named the building. Our staff have tried coming up with one but we haven’t landed on a name. Have any ideas on what we could call our new building?






Monday, January 16, 2012

What is Justice?

What is Justice?
Have you ever considered the word “justice”?

Here’s how the dictionary defines it:
jus•tice noun 1.: The quality of being just; righteousness, equitableness, or moral rightness: to uphold the justice of a cause. 2. The administering of deserved punishment or reward. (Dictionary.com)

The Bible talks about justice in a lot of different ways:

Learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause. Isaiah 1:17

But let justice roll down like waters And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. Amos 5:24

But what does all this talk about justice really mean for us? Administer punishment to the person we see littering? Go pleading for the widows to our government officials? Can we turn on a tap and see justice flow out like water? How does justice actually work? What does it look like?

Theologian Walter Brueggemann writes, “covenant members who practice justice and righteousness are to be active advocates for the poor and marginalized; that’s how we love God, by actively loving our neighbor.” Civil rights activist Cornel West says, “Never forget that justice is what love looks like in public.”

God’s justice is all about equality. The invitation of the Gospel is to live in such a way that aims to correct the inequalities in our community; sharing resources, knowledge, and opportunity. I like how the prophet Amos says, “Let justice roll down like waters.” The neat thing about water is that it spreads out equally wherever it is; it fills all areas in the same way. This is how I imagine justice to look- like water in a pond, there may be an uneven bottom, but the top is level; equal, all the areas of the pond are filled with water. Water doesn’t judge the bottom of the pond, which nook or cranny is worthy of being filled, it just fills everything up equally.

Perhaps that is how justice should work today. Loving our neighbor like water filling a pond; not judging the worthiness of the neighbor, just filling each one up with love and justice equally.

The following is a link to a video about Justice. It asks us: “If justice and injustice were embodied by humans, what would they have to say to us? Whose voice would sound more familiar?”

Have a look HERE to find out.

Friday, January 13, 2012

The "Deserving" Poor

While talking to a school principal who was supervising her students’ visit to The Mustard Seed, she mentioned that one of her fellow teachers had served dinner here some years before and had left feeling quite disconcerted.

This man had noticed that a number of people coming through the meal line were carrying cell phones, playing handheld video games, or wearing brand-name clothing. To the teacher, this was a clear sign that these people were not truly “poor” and were taking advantage of the free meal. He left that night vowing he would not come back again, but instead would look for more "deserving poor".

It hurts my heart to hear this story. Misunderstandings like the one above only serve to further marginalize the inner-city community and deepen stereotypes and misperceptions. So, how do we tackle issues like this when people are brave enough to ask questions instead of just leaving feeling upset?

First of all, poverty is about so much more than just not having money. In his powerful article, “The Culture of Poverty”, Rick Tobias writes that, “Long-term poverty can crush our capacity to dream. When our sense of future dies, our hope dies. When hope dies, we have no reason to dream, no reason to plan for the future. Long-term poverty is not primarily about money in the bank; it’s about the loss of hope.” Poverty is also often about lack of opportunity, lack of equal access to resources, and a crushing cycle of dependency. Just because someone has scratched together enough money to walk around listening to an iPod, does not mean that she is not deeply impacted by this kind of poverty.

On the topic of consumerism and “poor people having nice stuff”- when I was in university, I was financially poor but I still owned a cell phone and a laptop. Was it the best decision to buy these things with my limited resources? Probably not. Why did I buy this stuff anyway? Well, why do any of us have these things? To fit in with popular culture, to stay connected and available, to look good, to “keep up with the Jones’”, because we think we need them…. And the list goes on.

These feelings exist in the inner-city community too. Many people here already feel marginalized by wider society because of their circumstances. No one wants to look poor or homeless, even if they are. Often a simple thing like carrying around a cell phone (even if it has no airtime on it!) may make someone feel like they fit in to wider society, even just a little. Just because someone is wearing a Hurley hoodie doesn’t mean they can afford an evening meal (they may have gotten the clothing from our Personal Assistance Centre!), and it certainly doesn't mean that they’re not lonely or isolated . I don't want to remove personal responsibility from this equation either- the reality is that some people have never learned how to budget and so spend their money unwisely.

Ultimately, I wish we could have had a conversation with the teacher who left with so many questions. Maybe we couldn’t have answered them all, but at least we could have engaged him in dialogue so that he was able to think a little differently about issues of poverty and the people The Mustard Seed serves.

Friday, January 06, 2012

A Vicious Cycle

January is a tough month for people who use the services at The Mustard Seed.  I probably would go as far as to say it is the worst month of year.  Anyone that relies on government assistance gets their January cheques a week earlier in December to allow for people to buy gifts or prep for holidays which means that by January 1st most of the money is gone. January begins the month long wait for the next cheque.  Money is tight.
The frustrating thing about living on government assistance is that it is a hand out not always a hand up.  The average single person receives roughly $583 per month.   People on welfare may have lost their job, suffered some phsycial or mental disability or struggle with an addiction.  Can you imagine living on $583/month?  I couldn’t afford to pay my rent with that let alone buy groceries, pay utilities and have a phone.  Because of this people are constantly living from paycheck to paycheck and this begins the vicious cycle of poverty.  Lots of time is spent trying to track down the nearest food bank,  a free meal, shoes or hygiene items because they never have enough money.  How are people expected to get a job if they don’t have a safe place sleep, shower and wash their clothes?  How do you get a job if you don’t have a phone number for an employer to call you back for an interview?  Welfare is a challenging system for people to be a part of and does not always allow for opportunities for people to escape the cycle of poverty.
If you are more interested on the conversation of living on welfare you can follow MLA Jagrup Brar who has taken on the challenge of living on welfare for the month of January.  Be sure to follow this story throughout the month of January by keeping track of events and comments at http://mlaonwelfare.com/ 

Thursday, January 05, 2012

Relationship Resolutions

Happy New Year from the Employment Centre! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and that the start to 2012 has brought fresh perspective and hope for positive change!

When I reflect on positive change in my own life, I am often first drawn to my interactions with others: how am I cherishing and investing in my existing relationships and preparing myself for new ones? Am I consciously making myself available to impact others and help them grow?

Whatever involvement you have with The Mustard Seed, if any, I challenge you to consider these questions. You may find that you’re prepared to reinvest some of that balance you’ve had saved in your relationship bank account. Even if it’s a small amount, the returns will be higher than you can imagine, as so many of the people we serve are in need of that investment, and there are so many ways to make that happen.

The Employment Centre offers a few of these opportunities. If you have a career, a few free hours a week, some computer skills, a voice in the business community, or really any of the above, I encourage you to couple that with your desire to help others and consider volunteering in this area.

One group of volunteers we have are those who help with job searching, résumés and interview skills. They meet with clients at our Centre Street location during the day or in the evening to work on these tangible tasks, but also to build relationships as they discuss goals and issues as they relate to achieving sustainable employment. We have great volunteers in place doing this now, but can always use more.

If you have an abundance of relationships, but more of which are found in the business community, those can also be helpful to our clients seeking to secure work. We have several inspirational “Volunteer Ambassadors” who are currently using their private-sector employer connections to spread the word about our program in their daily lives. There is a great message to spread about what’s happening here, but it takes relationships to disseminate it.

Our newest concept is a really exciting one. All of our clients have Employment Coaches, but support and mentorship beyond that can be truly invaluable. We’re looking for people to use their own employment experience as a way connect with someone who is seeking advice and encouragement as they pursue stable work. We will try to match clients with volunteers who share an interest in similar fields of work, but ultimately, real change and success will come from building a caring relationship.

If you would like to discuss any of these opportunities, please give us a call. And for the rest of you: what are your “relationship resolutions” for this year? Leave your comments below!

Wednesday, January 04, 2012

The Future of Community

Hi there,

I'm Ty and I work as a Team Lead in The Mustard Seed's Housing department in Calgary. I spend a lot of time in Transitional Housing on the third and fourth floors of our oldest building, 102 11 Ave SE.

It has been through many changes over the years of its existence, but after all of those, nothing has been cooler than what is happening now through community building.  The residents are creating safe home for themselves, partly with the help of Resident Advisors (RA). Essentially, I'm talking here about peer leadership. I'm talking about residents in the midst of life recovery voted into a leadership role by their peers. One for each floor, and I'll tell you what - it's empowering. Why?

It is representative of the community you live with recognizing your gifts and talents, much like becoming a member of the board of a community association. The coolest thing was when one floor embraced a true campaign spirit! We saw posters, conversations, and a victory by only two ballots to achieve a majority as a slate of four candidates were whittled down to two and then one. I saw a great sense of fun, community and the importance of one’s voice when living in a healthy community.

The RA is there as a first point of support for their neighbours, to help brainstorm solutions, host social events, mentor new residents in the culture and welcome new residents, etc. Beginning this process was a powerful step, not just for our guests, but for our staff as well. It was a sign that we were throwing out the charitable model we know best, to simply say, this is our community: staff, volunteers and residents.

We're getting ready to live in the future of community. Are you?